Reach Your Target Audiences With Spotify (PART 2)

WELCOME BACK!

In the first installment of this blog series, you learned about how Spotify can be a valuable channel for colleges and universities to reach Gen Z and millennial prospects. Now, let’s take a look at the seven different types of ads that this streaming platform supports and seven tips for crafting ads that inform, entertain, and convert.

7 TYPES OF SPOTIFY ADS

Spotify provides advertisers with a broad range of creative and strategic options. With a minimum spend of $250, most campaigns can either be launched with Spotify’s self-serve Ad Studio or through managed services. Advertisers can opt to upload their own finished audio and video files or take advantage of Ad Studio’s free production tools and professional voice actors. Here are the seven different kinds of ads currently available on Spotify – and our recommendation for getting started with your first campaign:

1. Audio Ads (With Companion Display Ads): This is the leading ad format on Spotify and a great choice for first-time advertisers who want to turn a short script into a polished audio product. These ads are 15 to 30 seconds long and are served to music listeners between songs. They’re complemented by a clickable display ad, so users who interact with the Spotify app or site during commercial breaks can engage with your content.
2. Long-Form Audio Ads (With Companion Display Ads): If you have more story to tell, this option allows you to deliver ads up to 60 seconds long. More in-depth messages can foster stronger connections – but bear in mind that listeners can skip these ads after 30 seconds, so your most vital info has to be front-loaded. This format is not currently available on Ad Studio.
3. Video Takeover Ads: These audiovisual ads are 15 to 30 seconds long and are served only to users who are actively browsing on the app or site. This format offers many of the advantages of streaming video ads, with the added assurance that most users will already have their volume up. Like audio ads, video ads are priced on an auction-based CPM (cost per thousand impressions) model when you use Ad Studio.
4. Sponsored Session Ads: This option allows you to get exclusive video ad placement and reward viewers for engaging with your brand. These ads will appear only at the start of mobile sessions, and after your full video plays, users will see a clickable branded end card and enjoy 30 minutes of ad-free listening.
5. Spotify Audience Network Podcast Ads: While Spotify is best known for music, it’s also Gen Z’s go-to podcast platform. With so many popular and niche topics being discussed, the “podosphere” presents an unmatched opportunity for sophisticated targeting. The Spotify Audience Network enables you to buy podcast ads at fixed rates based on your ideal audience’s demographics, location, topics, and platform preference.
6. Title-by-Title Podcast Ads: For even more granular targeting and enhanced brand credibility, this option lets you align your campaign with a specific podcast or host. Ads can be recorded with voice actors and dynamically inserted into podcast audio, or they can be read by the host. These ads can’t be managed with Ad Studio.
7. Custom Experiences: This is a category of bespoke ads that we typically recommend only for colleges and universities that have already experimented with a few of the more straightforward formats above and have a truly extraordinary message to share. Options include playlist sponsorships, immersive display ad units, 24-hour homepage takeovers, clickable leaderboards, and custom microsites. These require a direct sales relationship with the Spotify team.

7 TIPS FOR CRAFTING SUPERB SPOTIFY ADS

Every college or university brand and campaign requires a different strategy – but you can almost always put these best practices in play:

1. Define Your Goal: Spotify lets you choose between two different ad delivery strategies: impression, in which the platform aims to serve as many ads as possible to your target audience, and reach, which aims to engage as many unique users as possible. If you’re an established college or university looking to drive consideration, impression is probably your best bet. If you’re an emerging higher ed brand, consider building awareness with reach.
2. Know That Time Is on Your Side: When you’re limited to 15 or 30 seconds, it’s tempting to try to cram in as much messaging and as many brand cues as possible. It’s best to resist this temptation and instead focus on delivering a concise and conversationally paced message. For a 30-second audio or video spot, we recommend a script of no more than 65 words.
3. Consider the Context: Conventional radio ads often try to stand out from regular programming with amped-up music, voiceovers, and sound effects. But listeners are more receptive to messaging when it goes with the flow. Choose background music that’s consistent with the genres you’re targeting. For podcast ads, consider the “neurosignature” of the content – factual, suspenseful, irreverent – and have your voice actors match that vibe.
4. Choose a Strong CTA: Be crystal clear about what you want your listeners to do – whether it’s visiting your school’s website, taking a virtual campus tour, or applying for a new program. Remember that listeners may not see and click on your companion display ad, so it’s good to mention a URL that’s short and memorable, with a minimum of slashes and dashes.
5. Go Multiformat: Audio and video each have their strengths, and one might be better suited to a specific goal or target audience than the other. But we’ve often found that running dual campaigns deliver the best results – and Spotify’s own data indicates that audio plus video is more than the sum of its parts, producing a 2x increase in brand awareness.
6. Dive Into Analytics: It’s worth taking a close look at the performance metrics that Spotify provides, so you can find out what’s working, what’s not, and why. These stats go way beyond overall conversion rates – they give you insight into how your message is being served and received across different age groups, genres, and platforms. This data enables you to make quick course corrections and optimize every advertising dollar.
7. Collaborate With a Skilled Team: Lightstream functions as a seamless extension of your in-house marketing team, deepening your bench with experienced digital strategists and creatives who are focused on the higher education sector. Every business day, we enable colleges and universities like yours to leverage powerful channels like Spotify and accomplish more with their marketing budgets. Reach out and learn more today.